The National tribune., 1887-04-28

A Comparison Between the Treatment Of UnIOI
and Confederate Prisoners.


AMI Confederate Prisoners.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE i read in an
article written by j. L. Richard, Co. b. 111th
Ohio, headed "A Happy Prisoner" in which
he quotes from the Southern BirOuac the state
ments of one W. A. Wright on Northern MILF
tary prisons, complaining Of The hardships
which he went through while confined in Camp
Chase o. i wish to make comparison of the
two prisons, North and South, and then leave
it for the reader to judge who has the best right
to complain.
We will take Mr. Wrght's own words. He
was sheltered from the northern storms BY
barracks, as he says. built of lumber, about
10 "a feet and each occupied by some - or Ia
men. Each room contained a c0Oking-stOve,
board table, benches and chairs, made of bar
rels sawed in two so as to form back. The
hunks were made of undreSsed lumber. The
only bedding in each bunk was from four TO
eight blankets, which were furnished by the
Quartermaster. The tables were supplied with
tin plates pans cups and colIeepoys and knives
and forks. He says they had to cook their
ratiOns, except bread, which was furnished
them. Their ratiOns consisted of wheat and
corn bread, with beef and picked pork, pOta-
toes, beans and coffee.
Now for the comparison. We will begin with
Belle Island. small piece of bread made out
of shorts and cornmeal mixed, between three
and four inches long, two inches wide by one
and half thick. The meat ration was also
very small-should hardly say two ounces.
That was our ration for one day, with the ex-
ceptiOn of once in awhile, when they had 1t TO
spare they would give US half pint OF broth,
or liquor that meat was cooked in. On some
occasions they would give us from six to eight
/ tablespOonfuls of the Southern stock pea, we'll
/ interSpersed with bugs, and omit the meat.
/ The above ration was served TO us for the space
/ OF IS days, when at the end Of that time they
/ cut OF the meat ration, and gave US only inc
\ small piece of bread but once day for tho
/ space of go days more, when about 900 OF US
/ starved wretches were removed TO AudersOn-
/ vile. There our SutieringS continued. IhlS
| was on the same morning the Lieutenants dog
/ was killed. / saw piece of the meat, but
did not get any for my breakfast.
/ Our barracks consisted of a Sibley tent,
/ which accommodated Is of US, and our hunks
were the cold damp ground with q few rags
and one blanket under US and one blanket
/ to cover three of us. My two bunk mates
\ died in AndersOnvile. One OF our number
I died in the tent one night from extreme cold,
aud we were unable to render him any assist
anee or watch his dying face, we being in total
/ darkness, but when he ceased to breathe wa
/ knew his sutlerngs were ended. This was in
the cold Winter of 63 and Oh Whea we would
get up in the morning the fog would rise from
the ground where we lay, from the warmth OK
our bodies.
remember one poor fellow who was withOus
covering OF any Kind, VINO would rua tnd
narrow street back and forth for hours during
the night to keep himself from freezing. About
once a week we had 10 be counted of TO see IL
any were missing, for fear they would issue @
ration too much and in order To 90 so the
rebs would march us out into plat OF ground
where we would be crowded together as thick
as sardines in a box, and kept us in that posi-
ton for two-thirds of the day without anything
to eat. Finally they wonld rush us back again
info our n,iserable dens and count us OFT as we
would 20 i'm. We had no eOOk-stove or any Of
the necessary appliances to make Us eOmforta-
Bile as Mr. Wright says he had. This is bus
n faint sketch of the suffering of the Southern
prison pens. j could fill columns with sicken-
ing accounts of the hardships endured while q
prisoner of war.-ROBERr T.. kENEY, Co. A
3lst Mo-, HillsborO, Mo.